Sec. 56.055. DEFERRED REPAYMENT

(a) It is the goal of this state that no resident be denied the opportunity to receive an education in a public institution of higher education due to a lack of financial ability. Accordingly, on a finding that a resident would be deprived of an education due to a lack of financial ability, an institution shall defer repayment of emergency loans under this section. The deferral provided for by this section is not a property right of the borrower.

(b) The deferred repayment must begin on the earlier of the following dates:

(1) the first day of the ninth month after the last month in which the borrower was enrolled in a public institution of higher education; or

(2) the fifth anniversary of the date on which the loan was executed.

(c) Under rules adopted by the coordinating board, an institution may extend the time for repayment of undergraduate loans made to students who later enroll in a graduate or professional program at an institution of higher education. The coordinating board shall adopt guidelines for determinations of extreme financial hardship and other instances in which the public interest is served if a loan is forgiven. Each institution shall forgive loans in accordance with those guidelines.

Added by Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 708, Sec. 15(a), eff. Aug. 26, 1985.